What if any current truck caps will fit squarebodies?

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SirRobyn0

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Yes, titled and the smaller electric trailer brakes. (10 X 2.5)


Keep in mind, even with a well sealed topper, you still get rain in if you don't seal the tailgate sides and lower edge. When driving the back of the truck is a vacuum area and the rain is drawn in. Even harder to seal a tonneau cover. Yes, stuff is much dryer than no topper.

You want totally dry storage? Get a good saddle box.
I currently have a saddle box / tool box whatever you want to call it. It was free. It's great to keep my straps in and a few bags of groceries, but also restricts full use of bed, so I have to pull it out when I haul certain things.

I have had a couple canopies on various trucks though the years. I had a Toyota with a fiber glass canopy, never again. I will never own fiber glass canopy again. They are just to dang heavy. My Dodge which I currently own, but only rarely use now, it use to be my primary truck, it came with a aluminum skin / aluminum frame canopy. I really like it in general, but it's cab height so it required constant removal and installation depending on what I was hauling. If I had something for the square taller than cab, then I'd really only need to remove it when I need to haul pallets or material. So a lot less.

If I had my choice I'd get a softopper. 77 K20 has one and we've talked a fair bit about it. Of course they are cab height but can be retracted in a moments notice. They are barely tall enough for me to get my barrels in, so I'd retract it, load and extend it back into place. But man $1,000 after shipping.... I keep thinking it's an old truck what if I need to rebuild the engine or trans, one of these days that money could go to that. I'm waiting on confirmation, but if I get the kind of tax refund I'm expecting I might pull the trigger.

The only two things about a tonneau cover that is attractive, is initial cost, at $300, and if I pick the correct model I could keep my bed rails. Anyone kind of topper and I'd have to remove my bed rails, which I do like them but it's fine and I'd keep them around for possible future use if needed.

this one is aluminum skin on aluminum frame. its also beat to hell and been around the block haha but 2 things 1) could you get a shorter, wider 55 gallon(Idek) 2) what you should do is setup your facebook to try and alert you for these. here, this size is not as common as normal, BUT they are usually a litttle beat up and often come cheaper. the amount that stands above the cab shakes and dulls the paint etc but they still do good.

I would say if you find one, you could make a spacer to use it with your bed caps you probably could make it a tad taller and still meet the cab lineat front. this one here is from ford, i only see ford ones.
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this looks pretty cool. nvm, the one i have might be for GM, that forward tilt seems to magically work there. but mine is slightly more swept back and possibly taller but not much at all if so.

also its weird watching people try to act natural at something they obviously have no idea what to do
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A Ford one is fine for me that square looks good with the high top canopy. Yea, the down fall is the bed rails. I'd probably just remove them. I did consider building a spacer for my Dodge so the canopy on that would sit higher, but besides looking funky it would mess with window height.

As for the barrels, I get feed, regularly from two people and a few others off and on. They are all standard plastic 55 gallon drums with the tops cut off. It is on an exchange basis so I bring my empties and exchange for filled barrels. Really no way to vary the size there.

IDK I dream of a topper of some sort one day. Really need to consider pulling the trigger on a softopper.
 

AuroraGirl

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I currently have a saddle box / tool box whatever you want to call it. It was free. It's great to keep my straps in and a few bags of groceries, but also restricts full use of bed, so I have to pull it out when I haul certain things.

I have had a couple canopies on various trucks though the years. I had a Toyota with a fiber glass canopy, never again. I will never own fiber glass canopy again. They are just to dang heavy. My Dodge which I currently own, but only rarely use now, it use to be my primary truck, it came with a aluminum skin / aluminum frame canopy. I really like it in general, but it's cab height so it required constant removal and installation depending on what I was hauling. If I had something for the square taller than cab, then I'd really only need to remove it when I need to haul pallets or material. So a lot less.

If I had my choice I'd get a softopper. 77 K20 has one and we've talked a fair bit about it. Of course they are cab height but can be retracted in a moments notice. They are barely tall enough for me to get my barrels in, so I'd retract it, load and extend it back into place. But man $1,000 after shipping.... I keep thinking it's an old truck what if I need to rebuild the engine or trans, one of these days that money could go to that. I'm waiting on confirmation, but if I get the kind of tax refund I'm expecting I might pull the trigger.

The only two things about a tonneau cover that is attractive, is initial cost, at $300, and if I pick the correct model I could keep my bed rails. Anyone kind of topper and I'd have to remove my bed rails, which I do like them but it's fine and I'd keep them around for possible future use if needed.


A Ford one is fine for me that square looks good with the high top canopy. Yea, the down fall is the bed rails. I'd probably just remove them. I did consider building a spacer for my Dodge so the canopy on that would sit higher, but besides looking funky it would mess with window height.

As for the barrels, I get feed, regularly from two people and a few others off and on. They are all standard plastic 55 gallon drums with the tops cut off. It is on an exchange basis so I bring my empties and exchange for filled barrels. Really no way to vary the size there.

IDK I dream of a topper of some sort one day. Really need to consider pulling the trigger on a softopper.
Did you see the other posts things with new options ? The one I have is legacy it seems but still sold new, which at its simplest has to be cheap at its most helpful, probably just going to be sized for a newer truck but overall will be easy to mlive with
Then also that commercial cap with ladder rack and swing door
 

BearKing

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I remember sleeping and riding in the bed of the truck when my father would take us camping in Minnesota,Wisconsin and Iowa. And yes we call them toppers. I think there are a few still on sone trucks in a couple of boneyards out here. We are still about 20-25 years behind everyone else in America. We still have REAL cowboys riding their horses to the gas station to have a cup of coffee with their cowboy buddies. They also have old Colt 45 leg irons on their hip. I love the West side of South Dakota. Ranch heaven and just pure American here. Its like the old saying, “ Baseball, Apple Pie and CHEVROLET”. Haha.
 

AuroraGirl

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I remember sleeping and riding in the bed of the truck when my father would take us camping in Minnesota,Wisconsin and Iowa. And yes we call them toppers. I think there are a few still on sone trucks in a couple of boneyards out here. We are still about 20-25 years behind everyone else in America. We still have REAL cowboys riding their horses to the gas station to have a cup of coffee with their cowboy buddies. They also have old Colt 45 leg irons on their hip. I love the West side of South Dakota. Ranch heaven and just pure American here. Its like the old saying, “ Baseball, Apple Pie and CHEVROLET”. Haha.
Ive met a lot of unrelated people here in wisconsin but were all from Aberdeen SD.

Ive heard some really emotional turmoil when praising how many bars and how much times you can commit an alcohol crime and get put back into society but this is where the tears start flowing.. wheres the 24 hour drive through liquor stores? "You guys are wisconsin and the bars outpace the churches but you cant drink after 2am?"

Puritans. who had state government leadership esp around the probation time.

But the onyl thing about aberdeen I can gather is that either marriages are done with shotguns and never formally or that they misss the leniency of the underfunded/dont care of the local cops and here they feel like its a police state.

But that may be something else that I wasnt privy to, like why they are in wisconsin or dont want to go back /cant seemingly lol
 

BearKing

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@BearKing You forgot the "Hot Dogs", Bear
Definitely Hot Dogs on an open fire. You are making me hungry. I remember riding in the back of my fathers pickup when we were in a major snow storm in southern Minnesota going to Des Moines Iowa. It was so quiet because there were no car/trucks on the road, just the sound of my fathers stacks he had on his truck. He built two semi stacks on his pickup. It sounded great. My father was a WW2 Veteran and I really miss him. He died from lung cancer in 1995. Thanks guys for stirring up those memories of my father. It means a lot to me. He was the one who got me into trucks. He was always modifying something on his rigs. He never got to see me serve in the Army. I signed up on 9/12/01 after what happened to the towers in New York. Anyway, THANK YOU. @idahovette
 

SirRobyn0

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Definitely Hot Dogs on an open fire. You are making me hungry. I remember riding in the back of my fathers pickup when we were in a major snow storm in southern Minnesota going to Des Moines Iowa. It was so quiet because there were no car/trucks on the road, just the sound of my fathers stacks he had on his truck. He built two semi stacks on his pickup. It sounded great. My father was a WW2 Veteran and I really miss him. He died from lung cancer in 1995. Thanks guys for stirring up those memories of my father. It means a lot to me. He was the one who got me into trucks. He was always modifying something on his rigs. He never got to see me serve in the Army. I signed up on 9/12/01 after what happened to the towers in New York. Anyway, THANK YOU. @idahovette
Ok I got one for ya. My dad bought a 78 GMC K20 in 79 or 80. This became the vehicle we'd take camping and to the ocean where they'd rent a cabin or cottage for at least one week. There were 4 of us. My dad's solution was to pull a van set, mount it against the cab facing the rear. He had a canopy that he'd put on for these trips as well. My brother is almost 10 years older than I so really this was only the solution for a few years before he stopped wanting to come on family vacations. But I have both good and bad memories of sitting in that seat with my brother, mere inches from my parents yet doing things without them being able to tell.
 

BearKing

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Ok I got one for ya. My dad bought a 78 GMC K20 in 79 or 80. This became the vehicle we'd take camping and to the ocean where they'd rent a cabin or cottage for at least one week. There were 4 of us. My dad's solution was to pull a van set, mount it against the cab facing the rear. He had a canopy that he'd put on for these trips as well. My brother is almost 10 years older than I so really this was only the solution for a few years before he stopped wanting to come on family vacations. But I have both good and bad memories of sitting in that seat with my brother, mere inches from my parents yet doing things without them being able to tell.
My father never took us to the ocean. I wish he did because I still have dreams of the ocean all the time. My father and grandfather/grandmother were from Eastern Washington. The Spokane area. My father was born in a very small town in northern Washington. Tiger Washington to be exact. My grandfather was in WW1 in a Top Secret unit based in Washington. They were the only unit to be issued lever action 30/30 rifles. I have never been to Washington but want to go before I die. My grandfather died 3 weeks after I was born. All the men in my fathers side didn’t have children until they were in their 40’s. I don’t know why but that’s what they did. I started my family when I was 25. My wife and I met as teenagers and its been the best 36+years of my life. She likes my car/truck habit. She’s the one who bought me my last truck. A 1976 Chevy Sport Step side 4X4 with the 400 smallblock. A very rare truck. I have only seen them in photos in magazines growing up and never in real life. She found it about 2 miles from my house. It’s the Catalina Blue Poly with White stripes. I am in process of a complete restoration on it. Buying parts every week. Anyway, enough about me. Such cool memories of riding in the back of trucks and we didn’t die without seatbelts and helmets. Hahaha.
 

SirRobyn0

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My father never took us to the ocean. I wish he did because I still have dreams of the ocean all the time. My father and grandfather/grandmother were from Eastern Washington. The Spokane area. My father was born in a very small town in northern Washington. Tiger Washington to be exact. My grandfather was in WW1 in a Top Secret unit based in Washington. They were the only unit to be issued lever action 30/30 rifles. I have never been to Washington but want to go before I die. My grandfather died 3 weeks after I was born. All the men in my fathers side didn’t have children until they were in their 40’s. I don’t know why but that’s what they did. I started my family when I was 25. My wife and I met as teenagers and its been the best 36+years of my life. She likes my car/truck habit. She’s the one who bought me my last truck. A 1976 Chevy Sport Step side 4X4 with the 400 smallblock. A very rare truck. I have only seen them in photos in magazines growing up and never in real life. She found it about 2 miles from my house. It’s the Catalina Blue Poly with White stripes. I am in process of a complete restoration on it. Buying parts every week. Anyway, enough about me. Such cool memories of riding in the back of trucks and we didn’t die without seatbelts and helmets. Hahaha.
Oh wow, I had no idea. Of course time marches on, now I have an RV and wife. Up until a few years ago a group of friends and I would pick a spot to camp at for a week. The only rule was we had to pick some place new each year, and it had to be in Washington, or just outside of it. So over the course of the 10 or so years we did this we saw a lot of different areas, one of the last ones we did together we stayed at a private RV park in Ione. I remember spending about an hour or more one day walking around the Riverside cemetery. On another day we drove up to the boarder. Spent a lot of time exploring, but still felt like we did not see it all so that fall me and the wife drove over with the dog and stayed at a motel in Coleville, and drove into the Tiger / Ione / Metaline falls area each day. What fun.

You really should get to Washington. You should explore the area your Dad was born in. Then hit the coast, the ocean towns that is. A lot of people don't care for the Washington coast because it is colder, and wetter than pretty much all of the rest of west coast. But I really like it because it is less touristy. There is still one town Westport, Wa. That is a fishing town. I really like it there. It's just an old school fishing town.

Thanks for the talk been very enjoyable.
 

DBigTen

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Nobody makes new truck caps for them. Does anyone know if a cap for a different model will fit my 82 longbed without too much trouble? I would be willing to fabricate mounts for it.
I've been looking for a cap for my 1980 longbed and I've been tempted by http://lakelandtruckcaps.com/. Unfortunately, they don't deliver.
 

AuroraGirl

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I've been looking for a cap for my 1980 longbed and I've been tempted by http://lakelandtruckcaps.com/. Unfortunately, they don't deliver.
hey wisconsin lol
I mean, they a dealer or manufacturer?
It appears they are both but I would bet they are just one of many. you should search for some in virginia
 

AuroraGirl

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K10, K25
Engine Size
400(?), 350
I've been looking for a cap for my 1980 longbed and I've been tempted by http://lakelandtruckcaps.com/. Unfortunately, they don't deliver.
I spoke too soon, the model 1000 with bilevel construction is what is on my garbage trailer and its been made for the last 30 40 years probably, but ive seen that same nomenclature when searching for this thread myself.
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84GMCSierra

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I found mine on Marketplace for $50, and put it on my 84 long bed, but it hangs over the tailgate by a couple inches. I'm not sure what year it is, and I've got it as close to the cab as I can without hitting it. I will see if there's a way to make something like the newer trucks have that comes off the top of the tailgate to fill in the space. I have also used bolts with lock nuts to hold it on. The clamps didn't hold very tight.
 

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